Today Paganism ‘Ended’ in Europe (1386)

With the conversion of the King of Lithuania on this date in 1386, the last of the officially pagan kingdoms of Europe came to an end. From this time on, all of Europe was officially Christian and guided by at least nominally Christian rulers. Although one can certainly debate the extent to which the medieval Christianization project was succesful at truly transforming individuals and societies, we should recognize the tremendous accomplishment that was achieved with the conversion of the last pagan frontier in Europe. Despite the fall of the western Roman empire and the chaos brought about by the fall of the Carolingian empire and the raids/conquests of the Vikings and the Magyars, nonetheless, the missionary expansion of the medieval church continued.